Margaret Atwood is a Canadian poet, novelist, literary critic, essayist, and environmental activist.

A prolific writer and a hit with literary critics, Canada's Margaret Atwood became internationally famous after the popular and critical success of her 1984 novel, The Handmaid's Tale (made into the 1990 movie starring Natasha Richardson, Robert Duvall and Faye Dunaway). She began her career in the 1960s, teaching English and at first publishing poetry, short stories and literary criticism. Her other novels include Surfacing (1972), Cat's Eye (1988), Alias Grace (1996) and the 2000 Booker Prize winner, The Blind Assassin.